Latest news with #ThomasRowe
The Sun
4 days ago
- The Sun
Our famous village is being turned into UK's ‘mini Glastonbury' where filthy tourists dump vapes & beer everywhere
A FAMOUS village is being turned into a "mini Glastonbury" with tourists dumping vapes and beer everywhere. The riverside beauty spot in Essex has been left blighted by litter-dropping tourists. 5 5 5 The small village of Dedham has seen an increasing number of tourists visiting during the recent hot weather. Deadham Vale nature reserve is a designated Area of Outstanding Beauty, famous for its water meadows and the River Stour. The river has seen an increase in visitors partly because of the rise of stand up paddleboards and inflatable kayaks. With a population of just 1,907, the village has been tarnished in recent weeks by tourists littering and engaging in "reckless behaviour". Conservative councillor, Darius Laws, has said something must be done to curb overflowing bins and cars parking on green spaces. The councillor posted a provocative video on social media on June 30 where he likened the scenes to last month's Glastonbury festival. "You'd be forgiven for thinking that I'm in Glastonbury," Laws said in the video. "No, f*** that, left-wing, so-called green, hippies. No, I'm in Dedham." The campaign video was accompanied by the caption "you'd think there was a headline act performing" and calls on tourists to start "following the countryside code" and pick up litter. In the video, councillor Thomas Rowe also adds: "Just remember, this isn't a festival, it's a village". 7 TOURIST DESTINATIONS - EVERGREEN LISTICLE Cllr Laws later said: "Hopefully, it gives people the confidence to tell people to pick up their litter and act appropriately. "The amount of rubbish and reckless behaviour we are seeing is really concerning. "It looked like a mini-Glastonbury. Bins were overflowing, people had dumped empty crates of beer, vape wrappers had been dropped on the ground. "We see people jumping off the bridge into very shallow water and they could so easily break their necks. "This is a beautiful part of the country, and it's not ok, it makes local wildlife sick and ruins nature. "We do approach it in a friendly way because people may just be ignorant of the damage they're causing. "The video was provocative to get people's attention and if people think twice then it's worked. "We live in a beautiful village in a beautiful part of the world. We're welcome to visitors but they've got to be responsible." Last year, the Environment Agency said the water could contain "levels of sewage, faeces from livestock and pollution from farming or industry" Cllr Laws also believes the nearby sewage water treatment plant, plastic pollution and animal waste have contributed to the water becoming contaminated. Colchester County Council said that they support the campaign and are calling on visitors to remove their waste. 5 5
Telegraph
5 days ago
- General
- Telegraph
Littering tourists turn riverside beauty spot into ‘mini Glastonbury'
A riverside beauty spot close to a rural scene has been likened to a 'mini Glastonbury' after being blighted by litter. Dedham Vale nature reserve is a designated area of outstanding natural beauty, famous for its water meadows and the River Stour. The village is half a mile from the iconic scene of Constable's 'The Hay Wain' – a famous landscape painting by John Constable from 1821, which depicts the river glistening in the sun. The small village in Essex has seen an increasing number of tourists visiting because of the recent spell of hot weather. Concerned residents said the village has been tarnished in recent weeks by visitors littering and engaging in 'reckless behaviour' during the heatwaves. In a video posted on social media on June 30, Darius Laws, a Tory councillor, likened the scenes to last month's Glastonbury festival. He joked: 'You'd think there was a headline act performing. You'd be forgiven for thinking that I'm in Glastonbury. No, f--- that, Left-wing, so-called green, hippies. No, I'm in Dedham.' Cllr Laws called on tourists to start 'following the countryside code' and pick up any litter. Thomas Rowe, a fellow Conservative councillor, echoed the concerns, saying: 'Just remember, this isn't a festival, it's a village.' Cllr Laws added: 'Hopefully, it gives people the confidence to tell people to pick up their litter and act appropriately. 'The amount of rubbish and reckless behaviour we are seeing is really concerning. It looked like a mini-Glastonbury. Bins were overflowing, people had dumped empty crates of beer, vape wrappers had been dropped on the ground.' He added: 'This is a beautiful part of the country and it's not ok. It makes local wildlife sick and ruins nature. We're welcome to visitors but they've got to be responsible.' Colchester county council said that they supported the campaign and called visitors to remove their waste. Elsewhere, rubbish and discarded camping gear in the Lake District led to a surge in complaints from residents who claimed they had been left 'heartbroken' by the behaviour. Campers using sites around Ullswater Lake and Glencoyne Bay in Cumbria were accused of chopping down trees for firewood, playing loud music through portable speakers, smoking cannabis and harming wildlife. One resident claimed that they found a discarded 12in zombie knife at one of the sites.
